The present invention relates to attachment and removal devices, and more particularly, to a device for quickly attaching and removing a wing of a missile, or the like.
Heretofore, missiles, such as the Chaparral missile manufactured by the assignee of the present invention, are shipped such that the missile body is separate from canards and wings. As a consequence, when the missile is to be loaded onto a vehicle and placed into an operational condition, the canards and wings must be connected to the body of the missile. The manner in which this has been done in the past is the following.
The missile body contains a plurality of integral 3/16 inch thick attachment rail or web that extends about one inch radially away from the tubular body of the missile. The attachment rail has a plurality of grooves cut in it roughly at a 45 degree angle relative to the axis of the missile. The wings have a curved base that matches the shape of the body of the missile and have a slot with bolts that extend across the slot and that are designed to slide into the grooves. Sliding the bolts into the appropriate grooves places the wing in contact with the body of the missile. Then, a two inch long locking bolt is inserted into a threaded hole in the aft end of the wing and a torque wrench is used to tighten the locking bolt against the aft end of the attachment rail. Unfortunately, the aft end of the attachment rail is a relatively small piece of metal and if the long locking bolt is overtightened by the torque wrench, the aft rail piece may be broken and the entire missile is made inoperable, since the integrity of the missile body is affected.
Therefore, it is an objective of the present invention to provide for a locking device that pen-nits quick attachment and removal of a wing of missile, or the like, and that eliminates the problems of the conventional approach outlined above.